The Rest of the Sun Belongs to Me
by R. M. Jackson
Summary: AU. Lit with JavaJunkie undertones. ANGST. The truck hit the driver's side. Jess was driving. Rory and Jess get in an accident and Luke and Lorelai must pick up the pieces. COMPLETED. LAST CHAPTER IS UP. LOOK FOR A SEQUEL COMING UP!
1. Fade to Black

_I realize that I promised to update Kiss Me Fool, but instead I came up with this. It's Lit, of course, and a chapter fic. This chapter is rather short, but it's main purpose is to ease you into the story. Enjoy._

_Note that this is NOT a post finale story, however, Jess did run off to California. Rory still attends Yale. Luke and Lorelai are together, although their relationship is not mentioned in this chapter._

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Amy Sherman-Palladino owns Gilmore Girls, Sonata Arctica owns my story title, and Metallica owns my chapter title. **

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* * *

Fade to Black**

Casually, Rory sipped her Dr. Pepper as she attempted to comprehend the words she was reading. A pair of hands covered her eyes. "Jess," she growled, warning the boy to remove his fingers from in front of her face.

"Somebody's grumpy today," Jess remarked as he leaned against the table she was sitting at.

"Nothing some onion rings can't fix." Her bright blue eyes twinkled with delight. He paused for a moment and her attention went back to the book.

"Wait, was that the cue for me to feed you?" Jess smirked. The corners of Rory's mouth turned up in a smile as she nodded. Jess kissed her gently on the lips. "You're lucky I love you sometimes," he jokingly grumbled.

Rory smiled happily as Jess snuck behind Luke's counter to retrieve her some free onion rings. He had changed so much from the young hoodlum he used to be. Jess had grown up, gotten his GED, and was even attending college part time. Rory knew she was part of the reason Jess was on the right track. When they were together, he was a different person. Even on a regular basis, Jess was starting to show his true colors to everyone surrounding them. Luke had always believed she would be a good influence on Jess, even when she was with Dean so many years ago. Thus, things were working out perfectly for the couple. For the most part, Jess had shed his attitude and his desire to smoke. Every once in a while he would light up a cigarette, but it would have to be during a stressful situation. Jess's precious leather jacket was still in the picture, which was something Rory could never imagine Jess without. That old jacket was part of his personality, much like his hair. Rory loved the way he wore his hair. It changed every so often, but the gel was usually consistent. Rory especially loved when Jess gelled his hair. The texture was a nice compromise; it was neither soft nor stiff and never sticky. Sometimes, when Jess was running late, he would neglect the gel and his hair would be floppy. She loved how that style made Jess appear younger and boyish, a side of him she rarely saw.

"Onion rings for the madam." Jess presented her greasy snack with a flourish and a smile. A smile, something that had been a rare treat in the past was a common expression for Jess. Rory was almost used to seeing a hint of Jess's naturally perfect teeth on a daily basis.

"Hey, come down here and take a break," Rory requested. Jess checked to make sure no one needed assistance and took a seat across from Rory.

"So I scoped this new place out in Hartford to eat. It's really nice," Rory said between bites. "Right next to this cozy little bookstore that just opened up, too."

"Sold," Jess said as he scraped the excess batter off the onion. "Are you busy tonight? I'm off here at eight."

It had been a while since the pair had been out, so Rory scooped up the offer, "Of course, silly. Busy with you."

Jess smiled. Rory couldn't get over how much he was doing that now. "Pick you up at eight-thirty?"

Rory eyed him quizzically. "I figured we'd just meet here at eight."

"Come on. What fun is a date if I smell like a bucket of grease?" Jess grabbed the loose material of his shirt. "There's some nice smelling grease right there. What's wrong with me needing to smell fresh and pretty?"

"The fact that it takes you a half hour alone to gel your hair."

"I'm insulted Gilmore! This 'do only takes 25 minutes, tops. You know what? Revoking your onion ring privileges." With that, Jess grabbed the heaping plate of onion rings as Rory chased him behind the counter to retrieve them.

* * *

"No. Turn left," Rory grumbled. 

"I'm sorry your directions are horrible, but stop taking it out on me," Jess pleaded.

Rory sighed. "Sorry." She was wound tightly tonight. There was really no reason for her attitude, she had just been unpleasant for the past few weeks.

Jess looked over in his girlfriend's direction. He had noticed her mood turning sour for weeks. Jess was uncertain whether or not he had done something or if it was merely school. Although with his knowledge of Rory, he assumed it to be the latter. "You okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine. I just want to relax and be with you." She sighed again and looked out the window. It was a cold night, part of a cold winter, but it had yet to snow. Each year, the Gilmores wished for a traditional "White Christmas," but they were hardly ever granted one. Rory couldn't remember the last time it had snowed for the holidays. It was a chilly February night, but it wasn't snowing. There wasn't even snow in the forecast. "I'd love for it snow," Rory added meekly.

"It will." Jess turned his attention back to the road. "I'll buy you a book when we get to the store, okay?"

Rory nodded. Books were the number one thing to cheer her up.

"Though if we keeping hitting every red light, we'll never get there." Jess took his foot off the gas and pressed his sneaker against the brake pedal. They sat in silence for a moment until the traffic light flicked to green.

"JESS!" Rory squealed as she grabbed the steering wheel. The truck's lights blinded Rory as it came closer. Before long, she felt herself floating in a dark abyss.

* * *

Lorelai turned away from the television as her phone began to ring. _Pesky phone._ She was extremely comfortable sitting, but figured the call must be important at nine thirty at night. With the receiver pressed to her ear, Lorelai muttered, "Hello?" 

A female voice on the other end answered. "Hello. Mrs. Gilmore?"


	2. Rebellion in Dreamland

_Well, here we go again. I think this is a pretty quick update. It's longer than the last chapter, and hopefully that makes up for the cliffhanger you all seemed to despise me for. There's some JavaJunkie in this chapter, so you can feast on that. I'm not going to say anything else, except enjoy. And maybe, just maybe, drop me a line._

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. I sold my soul on eBay for some rookie cards.**

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**Rebellion in Dreamland**

_I should have called Luke, _Lorelai thought as she nervously drummed her fingers on her knee. _I need coffee. _She let her eyes wander around the room. The waiting room smelled funny and there was a stain on the seat cushion next to her. Lorelai was lonely, and they weren't giving her any information about Rory. _I should have called Luke. _

"Lorelai?"

"Oh God! Luke! My knight in shining armor!" Lorelai propelled her body into Luke's arms.

"What are you doing here?" Luke's face paled after he let the words escape his lips. "Jeez...Rory?"

Lorelai threw herself into the chair closest to where she was standing. "Jess. Rory. Jess and Rory."

"They were together tonight."

Lorelai started crying. "My baby was in that car with that..." She waved her hands around frantically. "NO GOOD HOOLIGAN!" Luke sighed as he watched his girlfriend break down about her daughter. Luke was handy when it came to broken appliances, but not so handy when it came to broken women. As he sat down next to her and smoothed down her hair, Luke tried to forget her comment about Jess.

"Lorelai?"

"I'm sorry. About what I said about Jess, I'm sorry. The kid has grown on me. It's not like it was the last time." Lorelai looked up at Luke innocently with tears glittering in her blue eyes.

"Don't worry. 's okay."

Tentatively, a nurse entered the waiting room. "Ms. Gilmore? Mr. Danes? I'm Elena Horance. I have an update on your daughter and nephew."

The couple looked toward the nurse in the doorway. "Go ahead," Luke said gently as he gripped Lorelai's hand.

"Rory is doing well. She'll be out of the operating room momentarily," Elena paused at Lorelai's expression of horror.

"Operating room?" she squeaked.

"Don't worry. They just had to remove some glass from her arms." Elena cleared her throat and shifted her papers. "Anyway, she'll be out of the operating room soon. There were a total of eighty-seven stitches. Also, we'll be keeping her for observation to check for any swelling in the brain. It would appear that she hit her head rather hard on the door of the car. Her MRI turned up clean tonight, but it's always a good idea to check back for head trauma."

"My baby's doing okay, besides the rest of the bad stuff?" Lorelai asked carefully.

"We'll be getting her a room soon."

"Please, what about Jess?" Luke asked carefully.

"Jess is a little worse for wear. The truck hit the left side of the car, and Jess was driving. He'll be in surgery for the rest of the night." Luke's facial expression was making the nurse nervous. He seemed angry, but was still nodding after she told him the news.

Once Luke felt he was ready to brave the rest of his nephew's condition, he nodded again. "All night. Jeez. Go on, then."

"Because of the collision, Jess broke five ribs. One of his ribs punctured his lung and in turn the lung collapsed. Right now, the surgeons are attempting to drain the fluid that collected in his lung, correct the damage and set his ribs. It's very tedious." Elena cleared her throat again and unnecessarily shifted her papers.

The few seconds of silence began to eat at Luke. "Is that all? Or is there something else?"

Elena saw the pain flicker in Luke's eyes. "Um, yes. There is something else. Jess...Jess wasn't wearing his seat-belt. He, um, was thrown through the windshield."

Luke looked at the nurse for an explanation, not exactly knowing what it meant that Jess was thrown through the windshield of the car.

"He's very lucky, your nephew's very lucky. They'll be looking for any head trauma after he gets out of surgery. The possibility of head trauma is extremely high in these cases, but it really depends if and where he hit his head when he landed."

There weren't many times when Lorelai was speechless but, after hearing about Jess's condition, she was at a loss for words. She looked over at Luke and scanned his face for any expression. He blinked, and stared blankly at the timid little nurse sitting in front of them. In turn, Elena shuffled her papers and averted her eyes from Luke's.

"Is there somewhere we can stay?" Lorelai finally squeaked out.

She nodded. "We can set something up for the two of you while Rory and Jess are in surgery." Elena gripped her papers tightly and stood up. Luke and Lorelai followed her lead.

"DR. ANDERSON BENTLY TO O.R. TWO. DR. ANDERSON BENTLY TO O.R. TWO." Lorelai looked around as an announcement buzzed over the loud speaker. The floor was bustling with excitement, but the page seemed to be disregarded by everyone who wasn't Anderson Bently.

"Elle," a blonde nurse called over to Elena.

Elena looked up from filling out her paperwork. "Yeah Sue?"

"I just got the call from O.R. three. Lorelai Gilmore is out of surgery. They're taking her to recovery while they clear a room for her."

While the two nurses conversed over Rory's case, Lorelai tried to tune out the medical jargon and turned to Luke. "I don't want to be here right now. Can we get some coffee?"

Luke nodded numbly. "Coffee." He stood there, not certain of where his feet were supposed to be going.

Lorelai grabbed Luke's hand and started to walk with him. He was quiet, but not in the usual way Luke was. "Are you okay?" Lorelai asked softly.

"Yeah. Fine." Luke couldn't even convince himself of this. Was he fine? He and Jess weren't exactly each other's number one fans, but he still cared about Jess. If he didn't care about Jess, he wouldn't have taken him back in and given him a home _again._ The kid had grown on him too, exactly how Lorelai had put it. Jess had grown up as well. He was definitely the more mature version of the estranged teen that had dashed to California because he had flunked out of high school. Reality had changed the boy, and Luke was proud of everything Jess had done so far. But was he fine? Luke couldn't exactly imagine his life without his rebellious, dark haired nephew living with him. "I should have called Liz."

Lorelai paled again. "I need to call Chris. Oh, and Emily and Richard. Emily is going to be so mad I haven't called her already." Lorelai sighed. "Mostly because she gets some sort of sick thrill from yelling at nurses."

Luke handed Lorelai a cup of steaming coffee and she gratefully sipped at it. "I'm not going to lecture you about coffee."

"Thanks Lukey."

They sat in silence while Lorelai sipped her coffee and Luke attempted to drink his tea. His mind was on other things, and he couldn't even concentrate on the hot liquid that may or may not have helped him focus better.

Lorelai looked over to Luke, who seemed to be deep in thought. Many times, Luke would be silent in situations such as this. It was part of his nature to withdraw, she figured. However, it wasn't exactly like him to be this withdrawn. "Jess has a hard head."

"I hope so." Luke forced himself to look away from his steaming tea. "He'll be fine, won't he?"

"Jess is a strong kid. So is Rory. Luke, my baby's going to be fine. She is, isn't she?" Luke noticed she had tears in her eyes as she worked out her last words.

"She'll be fine."

After a few minutes of silence, Lorelai stood up. "We should go back upstairs and see if there's any news. Maybe Rory is out of recovery. I'd like to see her."

Luke nodded in agreement, still not being one for words.

As they reached the desk to inquire about Rory's condition, Elena approached them.

"I was just looking for you. They moved Rory into a room. She should be awake soon, we just have to wait for the anesthetic to wear off. I'll bring you up. There will be a new team assigned to her to examine her brain for post trauma. The staff upstairs is extremely nice. I'll sure you'll find them very comforting." Elena turned on her heel and pressed the up button on the elevator.

Lorelai attempted to brace herself as they entered Rory's room. She looked small, innocent, and young. The expression on her face was peaceful, but there were scratches scattered around her cheeks. Along her left cheek was a pattern of stitches, most likely where stray glass was surgically removed.

Luke rest a comforting hand on Lorelai's shoulder. "I'm going to give you some privacy."

"You'll be out in the hall?"

"I'll be out in the hall." Luke kissed her, and exited the room silently with Nurse Horance.

Lorelai pulled a chair up to the side of the bed. "Oh, baby." She took Rory's hand in her own and visually examined the damage to her daughter's arm. It probably looked worse than it actually was, but it still looked pretty gruesome to Lorelai.

Rory stirred. It wasn't cold anymore. Cautiously, she gripped the hand that was holding hers.

"Sweets?" a voice whispered.

"Mommy?" her own voice squeezed out.

"Oh sweets! Are you okay?"

Rory's eyes fluttered open and she studied her surroundings and said weakly, "Mommy. Don't lie to me. Is Jess dead?"


	3. Good Enough is Good Enough

Okay. I'm back. And since I delayed this chapter a little longer than I would have liked, I added some length to it so that it's longer than my previous one.

**Good2Know: I intended for Lorelai to make that impression. Don't worry, she won't _stay_ mean and callous. She explains her actions in a babbling manner to Luke. Read on, I promise.**

**S.Mariano: I try to _sound_ like I know what I'm talking about. I'm a medical buff and thinking about studying it. I try to not make things up, because I hate when people point out that it's incorrect. And thank you.**

**ShaolinQueen: I'm horribly sadistic too. I don't know why I get so much pleasure out of torturing my characters, but I do.**

Thanks to all my reviewers that reviewed both chapters so far: Kassandra27, S.Mariano, Curley-Q, Good2Know, gilmoreintraining, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, musicormisery4105, and cmtaylor531. This chapter is for all of you. I hope I didn't forget anyone.

**Disclaimer: **_I don't own a thing. That includes any recognizable characters from Gilmore girls, the song **The Rest of the Sun Belongs to Me**, or the names of my chapter titles derived from song titles of various bands._

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* * *

_**Good Enough is Good Enough**

_I'll be out in the hall. _No, no he wasn't out in the hall. Luke was pacing the waiting room for Jess, who wasn't due out of surgery for almost two more hours. The clock on the wall ticked slower than it had before.

Luke knew Lorelai's first instinct was to blame Jess, but how could she? She knew as well as anyone how different the kid was now. And not just different, older- 20. He wasn't even a teenager anymore, for Christ's sake! But Lorelai was a parent, a mother at that, and he loved her. Somehow, he'd forgive her outbursts.

He heard a creak behind him. Lorelai was lingering in the doorway. "Luke," she said quietly.

Luke opened his mouth to speak, but Lorelai covered his mouth with her hand.

"Let me talk," she requested. She took his hand and they sat together in the stale waiting room.

"How is she?" Luke asked quickly before Lorelai could cover his mouth again.

"She's...good as it gets," Lorelai said solemnly. "She...she asked me if Jess was dead, Luke! And then it hit me. I've been a horrible, selfish person. And I realized, Jess really could die. Oh, my God. Jess could die. And I don't want Jess to die. I _like_ Jess. He makes really good pancakes and he loves my daughter. He tries so hard to make up for his shortcomings and old flaws. Luke, I care about that kid so much. He's...well, almost like a son to me now. I was stunned. I just-Jess is Jess. Wow. That sounds even worse. I mean, it's Jess, he's a good kid, and I like him. And he and Rory love each other. And he-he's going to be fine. More than fine. He'll be more than fine. He'll be great. Better than ever."

Luke put his hand over Lorelai's mouth. "Shhh. You're babbling again."

"But what can I do to make it better, Luke?"

He turned to look at her and stared into her apologetic blue eyes. "Shut up and stay here with me."

* * *

The wrath of Emily Gilmore was not a force to be reckoned with. When she came storming through the Emergency Room, everyone just seemed duck for cover. 

"Lorelai Gilmore! Wipe that smirk off your face! You've got some explaining to do!"

"Mom, calm down," Lorelai pleaded sleepily, regretting ever calling her down. "I know since this is a hospital, it's the most convenient place to destroy others with your shrill commands. However, it would be extremely embarrassing to see any one of these patient, helpful nurses kneel over because of your temper."

"All I want is to see my granddaughter, and you're babbling about nonsense!" Emily slapped her palm on the counter, causing the nurse working behind it to flinch and then flee.

It wasn't the first time Lorelai had wished she had gone with Luke rather than wait for her socialite mother from Hell. She sighed and tucked her hair behind her ears. "Mom. Listen to me. I need you to calm down for Rory's sake. Forget about me for the moment, just, please, for Rory's sake. Come sit and talk with me for a minute."

"What is it Lorelai?" Emily snapped as they sat down.

"I just need you to be calm. Me and Luke, we're frazzled right now."

Emily cut Lorelai off. "Why? Why should Luke be frazzled? And why would you call him first?" she fired off.

Lorelai sighed heavily and gritted her teeth. "I'm getting to that, mom. Okay, Luke is here because of Jess. Rory and Jess were in a car crash last night."

"Who was driving?" Emily demanded.

"That's not important right now mom..."

"Who was driving?" she demanded again.

Lorelai sighed. "You're not going to stop asking until I tell you?" Emily shot her a look. "Jess, mom. Jess was driving."

"Oh, I should have known! I always told you that kid was no good for Rory!" Emily began.

"No, mom. It really wasn't his fault..."

"Sure. Of course. I bet he was drinking!" Emily accused.

"No, mom. Jess..."

"Don't defend that incorrigible little hoodlum!"

"MOM! They were hit by a truck that ran a red light! It was in no way, shape, or form Jess's fault!" Emily didn't interject. "Truck hit the driver's side," she murmured.

"Excuse me?"

"The truck hit the driver's side. Jess is really hurt."

Emily glanced down at her expensive shoes. "I apologize for jumping to conclusions."

"Rory is really upset. She thinks Jess is dead. I don't know what I'm supposed to be doing. I can't even tell her the extent of his injuries. Mostly, because we don't know the true extent yet. I lied. Told her he was fine."

"He'll be fine," Emily snapped. "How's Rory?"

"Shaken. Stitched up. Shaken. Upset. Mostly, she's torn up over Jess," Lorelai explained.

Emily stood up. "Are you finished lecturing me? Because if you are, I'd like to see my granddaughter now," she said harshly.

Lorelai sighed and stood up. She should have known Emily would react like this. No matter what, Emily Gilmore would always be irrational. "Yes, as you wish, Mother." Lorelai hit the up button on the elevator in frustration.

* * *

Luke tapped his foot on the linoleum. Liz was taking her sweet time getting to the hospital this morning. Although Liz had claimed she would be there at a decent time, Luke knew his sister better. 

"Big brother?"

Luke turned around and met his sister's worried glance. "Look who finally showed up."

Liz ignored Luke's biting comment. "How is he?"

Luke fought to compose himself as he fiddled with his thumbs. "Alive. Jess is alive."

"How is he doing with, you know? Is he medically okay?" Liz asked, sighing.

"Pretty beat up. They've been doing X-rays and MRIs and all sorts of scans that I don't know the names of this morning." Luke paused. "Haven't seen him yet." Liz didn't respond. "Don't understand doctors. They talk too...professionally, in terms I don't understand."

Liz nodded in response. "How's Rory?" she asked.

"I saw her once for about three minutes. Looks banged up, but she's alive. And she wasn't in surgery for seven straight hours, so that's a plus."

"Seven hours?"

"Told you. He's alive."

Liz nodded. "Kid's unstoppable. They know what happened?"

"Truck ran a red light. Smashed into the driver's side of the car. Jess was driving."

She dropped her bag and slid into the seat next to her brother. "He'll be fine."

"That's what everyone keeps saying," Luke replied. "Figure if they say it enough, I'll believe it. Still waiting for someone medical to tell me that."

Liz didn't respond. The scene was too much for her to take in. Here she was, in a hospital, waiting to hear news on a son she hadn't seen in months. Instead of talking, Luke and Liz sat side by side in anticipation of good news.

"Mr. Danes?"

Luke's head shot up and all his attention turned to the scrub clad doctor standing in front of him with a clipboard. "Right here."

The doctor shook Luke's hand. "I'm Doctor Bently, I've been working on your nephew for quite some time now."

"Is there anything you can tell us?" Liz asked.

"Due to the impact of the crash, Jess's left side was primarily afflicted. As you were informed earlier this morning, he suffered five broken ribs. We've tried to set the breaks as much as possible, but Jess will need to wear a brace around his chest to promote healing. Again, because of the impact of the crash, two of Jess's ribs punctured his left lung. Since there were two entry wounds, it caused to lung to collapse. In surgery, we were able to repair the damage. Does Jess smoke?" Dr. Bently asked.

"He doesn't smoke regularly. Just smokes when he's really tense. Chain-smokes sometimes, but it's rare," Luke answered.

"Okay. Jess can't smoke anymore, not even on the rare occasion that he's stressed out. His left lung is not going to be strong enough to handle the stress of cigarettes. His breathing is going to be extremely weak and it's recommended that he avoid situations of breathing heavily. Especially during the next month or so, it's going to be tough for Jess to breathe. After he heals a bit, he'll probably need a therapist to assist him." Dr. Bently paused to clear his throat. "Now, there was one more thing we were worried about and had to extend the surgery time for. In addition to surgically repairing the lung, we also needed to get to the spleen."

"The spleen?" Luke interjected. "They didn't say anything about the spleen."

"Right. That was probably because it ruptured after she talked to the family." Dr. Bently chewed on his lip and shifted his papers.

"Wait. Hold up. What?" Liz blurted out. She hadn't said anything yet, but the last statement struck her like a blunt object to the head.

"There was a tremendous injury to the spleen due to the crash. While in surgery for the lung, the spleen began to hemorrhage and eventually burst. We had to perform an immediate splenectomy, which is the removal of the spleen. The removal was swift, but there are going to be certain precautions Jess is going to need to take now."

"Just a quick question. I was never any good in bio, please don't laugh. What exactly does the spleen do?" Liz asked quietly.

"That's a fine question. There are plenty of people that have no idea what the spleen is for. Typically, we try to avoid removing the spleen. It's a purposeful organ, but you can live without it. The spleen is a like rather large lymph node. It's primary function is to filter the blood from viruses and such, things you wouldn't want hanging around in your body. Does that make it a little clearer?" he asked kindly.

"Yes, that's much better. Just one more thing. You said it filters the blood. Does that mean Jess is going to have junky blood?" Liz asked tentatively.

"No, not necessarily. There are other ways to detect viruses and treat them. Because of the loss of the spleen, we'll need to put Jess on medication that needs to be taken regularly. Jess now has a condition called asplenia, which signifies the absence of the spleen function. We have given him some immunizations to prevent illness. One thing we'll need to watch out for is sepsis. It's common with inflammatory in these situations. The Intensive Care Unit will be monitoring Jess's condition around the clock."

Liz looked at Luke. Luke looked at Liz. They both looked at Dr. Bently. "He's not going to die, is he?" Liz asked the question of the moment.

"He should be fine, unless there are any other complications. We don't count on running into any. One last detail, we'll be scanning the brain to check for any post trauma. The first scan came up clean, but sometimes it takes time before a hemorrhage in the brain can be seen on a scan. You'll be kept up to date on these scans." Dr. Bently collected his paperwork and stood up. "It's been a pleasure. I apologize if I've made this at all brief. You'll see me around if you have any questions. Jess is hanging out in recovery while they prep the ICU for him. A nurse will come by when you can see him." Dr. Bently shook Luke's hand, then Liz's.

"Thank you," they chorused.

Liz sunk in her chair and turned to Luke. "Shit."


	4. Another Day in Quicksand

_Okay. Here's a decently quick update. Before I get into the next chapter, there's just two things that need to be said._

_1. Is this story angsty? Yes, a bit. It's in that genre. But it isn't going to be **complete** angst to the end. It's just angsty right now, and it will get happier._

_2. Is Jess going to die? I'm not going to reveal what happens in the end, but I can tell you that I don't particually enjoy killing characters off. I'll hurt them, sure, but kill them...nah. Not usually._

_Thanks to all my reviewers! I'd write you up a nice note again, but I'm tired and I just wanted to get this posted. If you review regularly, or even sparsely, thanks a bunch. I love reviews._

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything associated with Gilmore Girls. I also don't own the songs **The Rest of the Sun Belongs to Me,__**by Sonata Arctica, or **Another Day in Quicksand,** by In Flames.**_

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* * *

Another Day in Quicksand**

Rory stared at the clock on the wall in front of her. It was the only other decoration that adorned her sterile room, the exception being the picture frame perched on her night stand. She sighed and reached over to pick up the frame. As her fingers brushed over the faces of the happily couple smiling back at her, a tear unwillingly fell from her eye. Quickly, she overturned the picture on the night stand and commenced staring intently at the clock.

"Rory?" she averted her eyes from the clock briefly. She had anticipated her mother, desired Jess, but got neither. Barely seeming to recognize him, Rory looked up at Luke with glassy eyes. He had his own problems to deal with and hadn't been by as much as he would have liked. Right then, it all disappeared. He came bearing pie and time for the girl who had gone on a tangent about Jess, then stopped talking completely.

"You're not going to talk to me, are you?" Luke asked gently. She stared at him blankly. "Right. Of course not." He held up the Tupperware container. "I brought pie." She stared back again. "Okay. No pie. That's fine too." Luke sighed and pulled a chair next to her bed. "Oh well. You know what they say about silence being golden."

* * *

During that time, Jess was also in his respective sterile room staring at his own clock. He was exhausted and in bitter pain. The medication they administered for his pain made him tired, but the nurses woke him up and bothered him so much that he couldn't get any sleep. His brown eyes closed gently for a moment until his chest constricted painfully. A strand of his dark hair drooped over his eye. He longed to be able to move it, but the restraint on his stronger right arm prevented him from doing so. In utter desperation, as the hair was now at a tickling point, Jess proceeded to blow the stand from his face until he felt his chest tighten violently. Where the hell was that nurse with his next dose of meds? They always seemed to be on time when he was asleep and peaceful, why couldn't they run like clock work when he wanted, scratch that, _needed_, them to be? Jess clenched his jaw as another surge of pain hit him in the chest. The pain was blinding and left him gasping for air. 

No. He couldn't gasp for air. His lungs weren't strong enough for him to gasp for air. He sunk his teeth into his lower lip and tried to chew through the pain. With his vision blurred and tears unconsciously slipping down his reddened cheeks, he barely noticed the whine coming from a machine on his left. Any activity from one of those machines typically attracted a nurse or a page, in this particular case it attracted the nurse he sorely needed.

"Pressure's up," she noted as the beeping subsided. "You need some more pain relievers, kid?" she asked kindly as she continued to reset the machine.

Jess nodded frantically, a fresh batch of tears visible in his chocolate eyes. He watched as the light haired nurse in the pink scrubs rummaged through the medical cabinet in the corner. Swiftly, she prepared the syringe and administered the medicine that Jess had been longing for. He knew it would take a few minutes for the drugs to kick in, but he already felt calmer.

"You okay otherwise?" she asked.

Jess opened his mouth to speak, but only garbled noises came out.

"It's the tubes," she answered the unasked question.

Jess sighed and tried to speak again, but couldn't.

"Give it a few days for your throat to heal a bit. The tubes with the assisted breathing machine can really kill you throat for a while.

Reluctantly, Jess nodded and sighed again.

"I'm Gabby. I usually come in when you're asleep, and I was here when you were unconscious. You're doing good, and you'll be able to talk back to me really soon. The talking, that I can definitely promise you." A siren blared from the hallway. "I should really go check that out. I'll be in later."

Jess tugged at his restraints and frown.

"I can't. It's an order to keep your wrists restrained. You keep pulling the wires out." Gabby tapped the door frame and waved.

Jess sighed and looked back up at the clock before finally being able to fall into a less painful state of slumber.

* * *

"She won't talk to me. Why won't she talk to me, Lorelai?" 

Lorelai sighed and raked her fingers through her dirty hair. "She won't talk to anyone, Mom. As much as you'd like to believe she's singling you out, I can assure you she's not."

"Well, what's wrong with her then?" Emily demanded.

Lorelai rested her face in her palms, but didn't give her mother an answer.

"Lorelai, when I speak to you, I expect some sort of a response."

She grunted.

"An _intelligent_ response is often preferred," Emily snapped.

"I'm sorry, what were you saying? I see your lips move but all I hear is _bitch bitch bitch_!" Lorelai retorted, finally just that aggravated.

"Lorelai!" Emily exclaimed, obviously appalled.

"You want to know what's wrong with her? Rory has been through a _trauma_. This kind of behavior is what results from said _trauma,_" Lorelai finally answered, punching the words. She needed her mother to give up and leave her alone. Coping with her daughter's _condition_ was taxing enough without her mother latching on for some answers she didn't have. "I just need some sleep and coffee, and maybe for you to **leave me alone.**"

Emily sighed in frustration. "I don't understand why I'm always the nemesis."

"Mom. If you don't leave my side in the next ten seconds, I _swear _I'm going to stick this where the sun don't shine!" Lorelai threatened, waving her empty coffee cup in the air.

"Lorela-"

"TEN!"

"I jus-"

"NINE!"

"This is-"

"EIGHT!"

"Oh, all-"

"SEVEN!"

"-right."

"SIX!"

"I'll-"

"FIVE!"

Emily stood up.

"FOUR!"

"Goodb-"

"THREE"

She shook her head in annoyance.

"TWO!"

The elder Gilmore retreated from the waiting room before Lorelai could attempt to further aggravate her.

* * *

Luke sat with a cup of tea by Jess's bed, simply watching the boy sleep. It had been the only thing he had done in the past couple days-sleep. Luke wanted to sleep, too, but he couldn't. The steady blip of the machine kept him satisfied that everything was okay with Jess, well, other than the fact that he was cooped up in an intensive care room. He heard a frantic knock from the doorway and looked up. "Lorelai? What's the matter?" 

"They found a hemorrhage in Rory's brain!" she sputtered.

Luke stared for a moment, dumbfounded. "What?"


	5. Hear Me Calling

Wow. This took a lot longer than I had hoped. Blech. Mostly that's because Windows XP is a horrible program. Every time I tried to log in, I was granted access to the dictionary instead. So...I had to log onto my iBook. hugs iBook Ahem. Sorry. I'm an Apple lover. _Anyway, _html doesn't work too well on when it comes to my little mac laptop. It posts the chapters in weird characters and gibberish. **BUT** my PC started to work again so I can log on! ...and more importantly, _post this!_ I consider it a reward because I had to walk for 45 minutes in the snow from work to home at 10PM tonight. It was very sad. The snow on the sidewalk came up to my hip. [

Okay! Enough about me...

Thanks everyone who reviewed chapter four. It made my day[s when I got them: **allycat1186, JessRoryYudaTidusforever, gilmoreintraining, hollowgirl22, Tears4Chris, ShaolinQueen, Curley-Q, Kassandra27, Sailor-Lit, D.M. Jackson, JessU8902.**_ Reviews make me happy!_

**Disclaimer: If I owned Gilmore Girls, I would have not walked a mile up Riverside Ave in the snow. I would not even live off Riverside Ave. I would be somewhere nice, like a warm Fenway Park mid-season. Also, if I owned Gilmore Girls, I would hold season tickets. But, alas, I do not own either. What a shame...**

_By the way, from the way Jess talks in this chapter, some may think him out of character. Put yourself in that position...anyone would react like that. Just a warning._

* * *

**Hear Me Calling**

Nurse Gabby administered his pain medication and checked the machines around him, a bi-hourly procedure for her. "Need anything else?" she asked cheerfully, expecting the usual shake of his head or tug of his restraints as a response.

Instead, "Rory?" he croaked softly, so weakly Gabby strained to hear him.

"Oh, dear," Gabby said as she played with the hem on her scrub top. "They warned me about this."

"Rory!" Jess said, stronger, more confident, and with fear dancing in his eyes.

Haplessly, Gabby paled. She hadn't been prepared to have a conversation with Jess yet. It had taken him longer than estimated for his throat to heal, and this had been his first word since the accident.

Jess caught Gabby's nervous glance. He shifted in his hospital bed and shouted as loud as his voice would allow him. "RORY!" His voice echoed and ricocheted off the walls. "RORY!"

* * *

"RORY!" Luke's heart leapt as he heard a familiar, however coarse, voice shout from the down the hallway. Nearly dropping his tea in the process, Luke hurried to Jess's room. 

"RORY!" As Luke entered the room, he saw Gabby trying to calm the young man down. However sweet the nurse was, Gabby was not able to quell Jess.

"He's hysterical," she said to Luke. "I can't get through to him. His pressures are all rising." Gabby motioned to the machines beeping all around them. "If we can't get him to calm down, I need to sedate him."

"Jess?" Luke asked kindly as he cupped his nephew's hand in his. "Jess, can you hear me?"

"Rory!" he said adamantly, though weaker than he had previously.

"I can't get Rory for you," he said. "Rory's going to be fine. She's just can't be here right now. Is there something else that Gabby or I can get you?"

Jess sighed and blinked back tears. "Die."

Shocked, Luke looked up at Gabby. "Think he just told me to die."

"Me."

His eyes shot back up to Jess. "What did you just say?" he asked tentatively.

"Me. Me...die." He cleared his throat and tried again. "I die."

"No, no. You're not going to die." Luke attempted to laugh slightly in order lighten the moment.

"Rory...die?"

"No. Rory isn't going to die."

Jess nodded, but didn't accept either answer. "RORY!" he howled.

"I have to sedate him," Gabby told Luke reluctantly. On his nod, she injected one of his IVs with the solution. It didn't take immediate effect, but Jess began to fall into a fitful state of induced sleep.

"_Rory_," he mumbled as he started to fall deeper into his sleep.

* * *

Lorelai sat in Rory's hospital room, solemnly playing with the ends of her hair. It had come as a shock to find out that the neurologist had discovered a minor bleed in her daughter's brain. Instead of whisking her away and cutting her open, as Lorelai had feared, the neurologist had explained that the bleed was very minor. Minor enough that it had "bled out" and Rory's brain was no longer bleeding. Lorelai was relieved, but frightened when the team of doctors let her know there would still be some permanent, or at the very least temporary, damage. Although Lorelai had hoped it would be easy to accept, the idea definitely wasn't. Upon further inspection, the neuro team reported that the minor damage was inflicted to her eyesight. The fact that her daughter would probably need glasses, and maybe eye surgery, was actually tremendous news. Compared to what could have happened to Rory's brain, Lorelai was excited that her daughter would be okay for the most part. 

A nurse knocked on the door frame, causing Lorelai to look up in surprise.

"Just here to give her some medication," she said cheerfully. "I'm Bridget," the nurse introduced herself and stuck her hand out.

"Lorelai. I'm Rory's mom." Lorelai shook Bridget's hand, pleasantly surprised how sweet the young nurse was. "How's she doing?" she asked tentatively.

"Good. Rory's doing really good, especially under her circumstances. We're impressed at how speedy her recovery appears to be."

"What about the bleed?"

"Oh, the bleed will certainly hinder her recovery a bit. It wasn't as serious as we thought, so it seems she'll be back on her feet much sooner. After she comes to, we'll rush her down to check how her eyes are faring. Actually, she's really lucky. I've heard the collision was doozy." Bridget rummaged around in the medicine cabinet and pulled out a vial. "She should be awake soon. It's a strict order to keep her under sedation for her brain to heal a bit. Other than that, she's golden."

Lorelai nodded, not yet able to find her voice.

"How are you doing?" Bridget asked.

"I'd love for us to not be here right now," Lorelai said.

After administering Rory's medication in her IV, Bridget turned to face Lorelai. "Of course. I understand. At least she's doing well. That's something we can continue to hope for."

Lorelai nodded in agreement. "It was nice meeting you."

"You as well. I'll probably see you again soon. I'm the designated nurse for Rory's case." Bridget and Lorelai shook hands again and the young nurse departed. The silence continued to linger over the room as Lorelai stared intently as her fingernails.

"Lore?"

"Chris. What are you doing here?" she asked, anger deeply evident in her voice. "I thought you were much too busy to pay a visit to your injured daughter."

Chris ignored Lorelai's disgusted comment. "I was heading over to New York for a conference and I thought I would come by."

"Oh. How thoughtful of you. Too bad you didn't come visit _before_ Rory's brain started to bleed. Then she would have been awake to talk to you," Lorelai sneered.

"Emily told me."

"How delightful!" her voice was laced with both sarcasm and anger. "Chris, I can assure you that you're not wanted here."

"By you, of course not. Rory's a little different though, Lore."

Lorelai smacked Chris in the face. "You have _never_ been here for us. I've tried to dance around that fact, but I can't get past it. You're a _shitty_ father, Chris. Even if Jess wasn't injured as well, Luke would have been here with me full time. He's more of a father figure to her than you'll ever be."

"Ouch." Chris hung his head.

"I think it's best you leave now. When Rory wakes up, I'll let her know you actually bothered to show up."

Chris didn't bother to protest. He knew he had been a terrible father over the years. Simple things such as putting business before his injured daughter was a clear example of that. He showed himself out, still upset that Lorelai would never accept him the way he was. After all, no matter how little he saw them, he was still Rory's father.

Lorelai sighed in contempt. Christopher just never got it. Smoothing back Rory's hair was her distraction at the moment. She really needed coffee, and possibly Luke. Knowing that she would still end up bringing back a second cup for Rory, Lorelai trudged downstairs for her elixir of life.

* * *

Luke removed his baseball cap and raked his fingers through his hair. It had been a couple of days since he had been _home_, and thus he attempted to relax. 

The phone rang.

No such luck.

Luke tossed his cap in the direction of his bed and sighed as he watch it hit the floor. The ringing of the phone jerked him back into reality. Gruffly, he snatched the phone from the cradle.

"Hello?"

"Hi. Is this Mr. Danes? I'm calling from Hartford Medical Center."

His heart flipped over.

So much for relaxation.

* * *

_Just one last thing...a bleed in your brain **can** stop on its own._


	6. The Looking Glass

This chapter is short, but not unbearably so. I was caught in a bit of a block for a few days...but I'm okay now. I already started the seventh chapter, so you can actually expect that soon. I promise.

This chapter is for Java, Lola, Christi, and El, who kept me occupied during my frustrating dry spell.

Also to my reviewers of the last chapter:** JessRoryYudaTidusforever, Kassandra27, hollowgirl22, ShaolinQueen, Katherine Tripp, S. Mariano, Curley-Q, JESSandRORYforever, gilmoreintraining, Kat Kat B., D.M. Jackson, Starbell, and Sailor-Lit**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine. Absolutely nothing. Not Gilmore Girls, not Sonata Arctica, and _definitely_ not Red Sox tickets.**

This chapter ties up the loose end of how Rory and Jess got back together. It's pretty basic, but the flashback/dream is in italics. There's not a lot of Jess in this chapter, but the next chapter will be all about Jess, I promise.

* * *

**The Looking Glass**

"Luke, he's going to be fine." Lorelai rubbed Luke's shoulders. She had never seen him quite like this before. Luke was never one to wear his emotions on his sleeve. Although he was not crying, Lorelai could tell he was about to. Crystal droplets gleamed in his tear ducts.

He was silent. Luke knew if he opened his mouth that something would come out that wasn't meant to.

"When was the last time you ate?" Lorelai questioned, genuinely concerned about her Diner Man.

Luke grunted. "The other night."

Lorelai gasped dramatically. "Well, let's get some food! Food always makes me feel better, so we'll see about you." Lorelai grabbed Luke's hand and pulled him from the chair he was sitting in. "Come on, let's go!" Reluctantly, Luke let Lorelai escort him down to the hospital cafeteria.

"It's expensive," Luke noted as he quickly scanned the prices.

"It's okay," Lorelai responded as she looked around the cafeteria. For a hospital, they sure had a lot of junk food. "Ooh! Fries!" Luke shook his head as Lorelai dashed toward the counter that served greasy food. He looked around at the food surrounding him and sighed. Almost as quickly as she had disappeared, Lorelai returned with a huge burger, a mound of fries and a separate plate of onion rings.

"Lukey, there's a salad bar over there." There was. The salad bar Lorelai had pointed out was huge. Probably every type of salad fixing Luke enjoyed cluttered the bar. Because of that, he would definitely eat tonight.

Lorelai watched Luke circle the salad bar, heaping the food on top of his plate. He was so broken up over Jess, she just didn't know how to help him. When he joined her once again, the pair headed over to the register to pay. In silence, they chose a table and began to eat.

"We should go see Rory today," Luke said as he took a bite of his salad. He put the fork down so he could look at Lorelai.

She nodded. "They said she should be awake soon." Luke noticed the distress that laced Lorelai's voice.

"She'll wake up. They probably still have her sedated. They had Jess on sedation after he came out of surgery." Luke kicked himself for bringing Jess back into the conversation. It wasn't that he was trying to get his mind off Jess, he just wasn't sure how to talk about his feelings regarding him.

Somehow, Lorelai always understood. "That's what they said. I just want her to wake up," Lorelai said, dropping Jess from the conversation as quickly as Luke brought him up. As soon as she did, the pleading in Luke's eyes vanished.

* * *

Rory was in a forced state of sleep. Her mind was wandering as she lay there, fast asleep. The last thing she had thought about was Jess. _Jess..._ She didn't know if Jess was okay or not. She wanted to open her eyes, but she couldn't. Rory tried to fight the grogginess of sedated sleep, but she wasn't able to. 

_"Jess! Wait!" Rory called from her door way. _

_Gruffly, Jess turned around to face the young girl. "What?" he snapped. _

_Rory turned away in frustration. "Why do you have to make it so hard?" she asked angrily._

_Jess looked stunned. "What are you talking about Rory?"_

_"This. Us. Why do you have to make loving you so hard?" she questioned, tears glittering in her big blue eyes._

_Love...really? And without another thought in his mind, Jess took Rory in his arms and kissed her like she had never been kissed before. _

_"Jess?" Rory looked up at his after they were forced to break away from the kiss. "Why can't we be together here? Then it wouldn't be so hard."_

_As much as he didn't want to stay in Connecticut, especially Stars Hollow, Jess had to admit that he wanted to be with Rory more than anything. She looked up at him with pleading eyes. "I'm different. I've changed," he said, softening his voice._

_"Jess," she said lightly._

_"I'm different," he said strongly. "I care about you more than myself." Then, Jess dropped his voice. "I love you...and I want us to be together."_

_"In Connecticut?"_

_Jess touched his forehead to Rory's. "Wherever you want us," he said softly. _

Rory squirmed in her bed, causing a machine to go off. A nurse rushed into her room to quiet the wailing machine. She noticed Rory's face held tightly in a grimace. "Baby," she said protectively, "you've gone through too much." The nurse smoothed the hair away from Rory's eyes. "Dream a little dream, babe," she whispered as she upped the dose of sedation.

_"Do you want me to take you home?" Jess asked softly as he spied the many boxes that were stacked around the room._

_"I think tonight should just be about us," Rory answered. "But I would like to get out of here. I want to move my boxes."_

_"Okay," Jess agreed._

_"Why are you being sweet?" Rory questioned. "Since you got here, you've been sweet. You have barely been gruff and secretive. You've told me things," she said._

_Jess sighed and sat down on a box. "Because, I lost you once when I was mean and short with you," he explained kindly. "I didn't want it to be like that anymore."_

_Rory smiled. "Me either."_

_"I didn't want to act like I was mad at the world anymore. So I grew up," Jess explained._

_"It just seems very...un-Jess."_

_Jess smiled. _

_"Oh, what's this? A smile, not a smirk?" Rory gasped, causing Jess to smile wider. "You really have lightened up. I like your teeth. I don't think I've ever seen them before." _

_"I'm happy."_

_"Jess Mariano? Happy? In the same sentence?" Rory gasped once more. "I'm shocked!"_

"She looks peaceful," Luke said.

Lorelai hung back. "Can you dream under sedation?" she asked tentatively.

Luke turned to Lorelai. "I don't see why not."

"Good. I'd hate for her to just be locked away in darkness without at least a thought of happiness," Lorelai said softly.

_"I told you, only for you, Rory Gilmore, only for you," Jess's voice started to fade away as Rory pulled herself from the scene._

"Hey, look, I think she's moving."

"Oh, my baby!" Lorelai squeaked. She rushed to her daughter's side. "Can you hear me, sweets? Can you hear me at all?" she asked, blinking back tears.

Rory's eyelids fluttered slightly. Lorelai drew in a breath. Rory's eyelids fluttered again. Soon, Lorelai was staring into her daughter's blue eyes.

"Rory?" Lorelai asked lightly.

Rory blinked. "Mom?"

"Honey?"

Rory blinked again. "Mom? Why can't I see?"


	7. Screaming in the Darkness

_I bet you thought my new story **Diamonds and Rust** was your Christmas present. Nope. This is! A new chapter. I made a promise in the first chapter of **Diamonds and Rust** that all my stories would balance out. I also promised that Jess would take a big piece of this chapter. There's another flashback/dream in this chapter, but it's in Jess's mind this time. I'm not going to go into detail, but enjoy this enstallment! The next chapter should follow shortly, now that my muse is keeping me in check._

_This chapter is for my OLC buddies for keeping me occupied while I grapple over my plot. Thanks to all my reviewers who took the time to drop me a line for chapter six:_ _**Starbell, ShaolinQueen, MaryLaC123, Sailor-Lit, Jeremy Shane, Curley-Q, Good2Know, Kat Kat B., Kassandra27, JessRoryYudaTidusforever, gilmoreintraining, JESSandRORYforever, Loridhhp, HelloLuLuKitty, kaypgirl, gilmoregirlsalwaysforever, and allycat1186. **Thanks for the reviews, everyone. I hope you like this chapter. Reviews make me (and my muse) happy!_

**Disclaimer: I now own the Gilmore Girls box set, but as for the rights...I'm still working on that one.**

_

* * *

_

**Screaming in the Darkness**

_"Jess? Jess? Are you asleep?"_

_Jess grunted and attempted to open one of his eyes. "Mmm?" he asked sleepily. It was dark, so he closed his eyes again, hoping that his body would think he was still sleeping. _

_"Jess?" _

_"What's the matter, Rory?" he asked, still sleepily._

_"I can't sleep," she said, snuggling closer to his smooth body. He wrapped his arm around her and nestled his hand at the curve above her hip._

_"And you woke me to tell me that?" he mumbled. "You couldn't have taken a pill or something?" Jess sat up a little to get a better look at the pretty girl._

_"Tell me a story?" Rory begged. Jess groaned, which caused her to pinch the skin that covered his ribs. He danced his fingers around her waist and flat stomach. Rory buried her face in his chest, laying in wait for her story. _

_"Come on, you know I'm not any good at pulling these things out spontaneously," Jess complained._

_Rory pouted. "Okay, I'll settle for a kiss then," she bargained, drawing her nails around his chest lightly._

_Jess kissed Rory longingly on the lips until she pulled away and smiled at him contently. Jess smoothed down Rory's hair. "You know I love you, right?"_

_Rory nodded. "You don't say it nearly enough." She moved closer so that their noses touched._

_"I'll work on that," he promised as they cuddled closer. "Better now?" he asked her._

_"Much," she responded, kissing his scruffy cheek._

_"Do you think you can go back to sleep now?" he asked with a yawn. She nodded slightly and he kissed her cheek. "Sleep tight, Ror."_

_"Mmm, g'night."_

The monitor next to Jess beeped again and Gabby turned it off once more to reset it. "What's the matter with you?" she asked the sleeping form. "Something in your mind is making your pressure go up."

The boy stirred sleepily and clutched at the bed rail, expecting something soft and human.

"You poor thing," Gabby remarked as she watched his peaceful sleepy expression fall into a exhausted frown. "Everything will be better eventually," she promised, keeping her voice low just in case Jess was conscious enough to hear her.

_She gripped onto him lovingly in her sleep. Jess had missed their moments, and he wasn't about to screw his second chance up like he had done in the past. Kissing the top of Rory's head, Jess snuggled under the blankets and closer to Rory._

* * *

"I haven't seen Liz around for a while," Lorelai said in the attempt to break the silence that had been created between them. 

"Went home for a little while," Luke grunted. "Said she had to sort some things out."

"What about her son?" Lorelai asked, shocked that a mother would ever leave her child's side in favor of home. After all, Jess was still cooped up in the intensive care unit.

"That's Liz for you," Luke said simply.

Lorelai tried to accept that as an answer, but couldn't. "Is she coming back?"

"Should be," Luke answered shortly. "Doubt Jess cares one way or another."

"But she's his mother!" Lorelai reminded Luke harshly.

"Since when has that ever made a difference to Jess? She's kicked him out more times than I can count!" Luke began to rant. "She was always getting drunk and brought home abusive men that would beat Jess when they got bored with her! Have you ever noticed he calls her Liz, never mom or mother, even when he's as helpless as can be?" Luke continued furiously, even after Lorelai's face paled slightly. "Just because Rory has so many people to flock to her bedside doesn't mean Jess does too! Jess has me and Rory, maybe someday he'll have Liz if she finally grows up and decides to act like a mother!" Luke ended his rant gruffly as Lorelai sat there, shocked and silent. Surprisingly, all the words really had come out of his mouth. Luke was surprised there was so much in his head, let alone to Lorelai. He had snapped at her, but she didn't seem to mind at all. Instead, she was smiling at him affectionately. "What?"

"It's good you were able to get something out," she said softly.

"Where have your parents been? I haven't seen them around either," Luke asked, attempted to switch the subject off him.

"Emily's been around, I've just been good at avoiding her. She mentioned in passing that Richard sends him love, but unfortunately he'll be in Europe for a bit longer." Lorelai scowled. "And Rory adores her grandfather."

"Everything is going to work out," Luke said with certainty embedded in his voice. "Rory, Jess, they're going to be fine, so that means we'll be fine."

Lorelai nodded in agreement. "I love you," she said. Luke responded with a kiss as he stroked her soft hair.

* * *

Jess pressed the nurse call button harder. His chest had exploded with pain to the point where even seeing clearly could become an issue. "Damn it," he whispered under his breath as he cupped his hand over his stitched up wound. As he had assumed, it was the same patch of stitches that had burst and started to bleed the other day. The hospital gown was obviously covering the bandaged stitches, but he knew they were inflamed. He had even heard Gabby warn Luke about a possible infection the night the called him in to talk about the situation. 

Jess sighed and pressed the button for the nurse again. He wasn't fond of the new night nurse. She struck him as lazy, and she wasn't as nice to him as Gabby was. To add to that, she never answered pages when he needed her. Oh, but when he would roll over on the call button at night by accident, she certainly had no qualms about waking him up. "Fuck." Jess bit his lip to ration out the pain. The call button just wasn't going to work at this time of night.

Jess did the only thing he could think of-scream as loud as he could. As he harshly sucked a breath in, Jess could feel the tear in his chest and the blood drench his skin as it leaked from the burst stitch.

The next thing that came out of his mouth was a muffled cry of pain, an agonized cry of a wounded child.


	8. The Light I Shine on You

Here's chapter eight! There's some Luke/Rory bonding. LOTS of Jess/Rory in the next chapter. You can hold me to it. Happy 2008!

Thanks to all my reviewers to the last chapter!: _**Katherine Tripp,** **Sailor-Lit, Jeremy Shane, Starbell, Curley-Q, Loridhhp, JessRoryYudaTidusforever, Kassandra27, RoRyJeSsAdDiCt, gilmoreintraining, Good2Know, chrissy, ShaolinQueen, Kat Kat B., hollowgirl22**_

**_Disclaimer: We've gone over this before. If I owned Gilmore Girls, what am I doing here?_**

* * *

**The Light I Shine on You**

Luke paced the waiting room silently. The doctors had whisked Jess away to an exam room to check out his stitches and the possible infection site. Not in the mood to burden Lorelai once again, Luke hadn't bothered to call her down at this time in the morning. He knew she hadn't been getting a whole lot of quality sleeping time either.

The tick of the clock was grating on his nerves. For some reason, Luke had a sudden need to see Rory. It was three-thirty in the morning, so Luke had no doubts that she would be asleep. That didn't matter to him, in fact, it was the least of his worries. Luke had been with Jess for the past two days since he originally busted his stitches. Sooner or later, he'd planned to pay a much needed visit to Rory. He had missed all the important events with her. Although Lorelai had filled him in about Rory regaining her sight, he hadn't been able to confirm that fact. Besides, even peeking in on a sleeping Rory would waste a bit of time. That was another thing Luke needed.

While walking down the hallways, Luke realized the hospital never really slept. No matter what time of day it was, the floors always bustled with attentive doctors and nurses. There was a small plaque with a removable tag next to Rory's room. _Lorelai L. Gilmore_. Although the door was open, Luke still felt as though he would be intruding. As he entered the room, he noticed it wasn't completely dark. Luke remembered Lorelai told him that Rory had a new appreciation for light since she had gotten her vision back. She insisted there be light at all times of the day. Instead of waking up in a dark room and fearing her vision was gone once again, Rory would wake to glorious light.

Emily had swung her weight, and the Gilmore name and fortune, around to get Rory a spacious single room. Luke took a seat by Rory's bed and wondered if he should even be on this floor at almost four in the morning. Rory stirred and he noticed she was hanging onto a teddy bear for dear life. It was a ragged old teddy bear, probably one from her childhood, but Luke couldn't recall how Rory came upon it.

_"Please Jess? Please win me a bear?" Jess groaned._

_"Rory, in the time it takes to me to win that stupid thing, we could have just gone and bought one."_

_Rory pleaded with her eyes, which ultimately meant she would win him over. "I don't care if he's ugly, I want him."_

_As much as he wanted to think he was good at them, Jess hated arcade games. On one hand, Jess didn't want to fork over money to win that silly looking bear. On the other hand, he couldn't ignore his rosy girlfriend waiting expectantly for her prize._

_After he won that bear, she slept with it every night. When he left her in favor of California, it was abandoned to the Jess box that resided in the back of her closet. Every once in a while, she'd remove the Jess bear from its musty resting place and imagine his scent. Soon after, she would return the stuffed animal to the box and shove it in the back of her closet once more. When Jess finally returned and they had made amends, the bear had found a new home back on her bed._

The little heart shaped nose caused Luke to remember that bear was the beloved Jess bear. Lorelai had obviously brought Rory the bear for comfort. Luke noticed Rory was absentmindedly stroking the bear's ear as she slept. Somehow, Jess would have found that to be adorable.

"Mmhm. Hi Luke," a tired voice said from the bed.

"Rory." Luke hadn't expected her to actually be awake. "It's late."

"Very late," she agreed as she eyed the wall clock. "Is there something wrong?" Luke noticed that as she said that, she clutched the bear tighter.

"No," he responded quickly.

"You're a terrible liar," she said tiredly. "It's four in the morning. You should be at home, asleep." Sleep. What a foreign concept to Luke lately.

"I've been spending most of my time here."

"With Jess."

"With Jess," he agreed.

"I want to see him...to see if he's okay." Rory's eyes were glassed over. She gripped the bear tighter and closer to her. "He...he," she tried to choke her thought out. "I miss him."

Luke nodded simply. "He misses you too. He asked for you the other day." Rory's eyes lit up. "We should see if you'd be permitted on that floor soon. He'd love some company." _Then maybe he'll stop calling your name in his sleep_, Luke thought.

"He's...okay?" she squeaked out.

Luke wanted to dance around the issue of Jess and his stitches, but he didn't want to keep it from Rory.

"Luke?" Rory demanded. The flannel clad man had stayed silent for too long.

"He can't talk much. His throat is sore because of the breathing tube they had down it."

Rory wrung her hands. "Luke, I know that. You told me that already. What else is there?" she demanded softly.

Luke stayed silent again, not exactly sure what to say. He wished he had continued to pace the waiting room rather than talk around his nephew's condition with Rory.

"Luke? Please, I need to know." Her voice was steady, but deeply concerned.

"He's...he burst his stitches," Luke worked out.

Rory let out a little wounded squeal. "Is he okay?"

"They have him in an exam room to repair the cosmetic damage. They didn't think he needed surgery again." Rory nodded solemnly.

"Luke? I'm sleepy. Can you come back later in the day?" Rory requested with a yawn. She snuggled further down the covers and snuggled the bear close.

"I should go check on Jess," he said as he got up. "I'll come back," he promised. Rory nodded, yawned, and closed her eyes.

As he exited Rory's room, Luke hoped Jess was back in his own room. Much to his surprise, when he arrived in ICU, he was. There was a new machine with a bag of blood attached to it. Jess looked asleep, and peaceful. Luke was so tired that he scooted a chair next to Jess's bed to share his pillow.

* * *

When Luke opened his eyes, he realized Jess was awake as well. "Well, hey there, Uncle Luke," he said hoarsely. 

Luke needed the sound of his nephew's voice as much as he needed air. "How are you feeling?"

Jess smiled. Luke loved that he was smiling at him. "Like a truck ran me over, threw it in reverse and backed over my body," he joked.

"Jess?" Gabby stood in the doorway. "You have a visitor."

Luke sat up and expected Gabby to wheel Rory into the room. Instead, someone else followed behind her.

He looked over at his nephew. A scowl was plastered on Jess's face.


	9. Stronger Than the Flame

Drum roll, please! Here's chapter nine! There's some lovely lit at the end. I hope you can enjoy this chapter as much as the others!

**Disclaimer**:** Even though I wish I owned Gilmore Girls, that does not make it true. All I own is a stationary set and two laptops. **

_I have absolutely amazing reviewers! That said, I need to thank the 22 people that made chapter eight the most reviewed chapter as of yet: jess (my first review of 2008! Amazing, thank you!!), Sailor-Lit, MaryLaC123, kathi-ryn, Loridhhp, Kassandra27, Jeremy Shane, Curley-Q, LorLukealways, EvilSmirk6, hollowgirl22, Good2Know, internet-girl, ShaolinQueen, Starbell, Ka. Kat B., blonde biatch, DMG, **Java!, Sophie!,** imcck, and Phoebegirl319. _

* * *

**Stronger Than the Flame**

"What are you doing here?" Jess sneered.

Luke looked at Jess, then at the blonde woman standing in the doorway. Still confused, he looked back at Jess for answers. All Jess's facial expression revealed to him was pure disgust.

"Jimmy sent me," she said.

"Why would Jimmy have sent you all the way here?" Jess barked lightly.

Sasha stared him down. "Because when you come down to it, he's your father."

Jess glared at his father's girlfriend. "Neither of you has a right."

Luke was extremely confused. Never before in his life had he seen this woman who claimed to know James Mariano. He didn't feel it was his place to cut into the conversation just yet.

"You kicked me out! Neither one of you would let me stay. I had no home!" Jess sputtered. "All I wanted was to know my father. Jimmy had no intentions of ever getting to know me, and you wouldn't have let him." Jess closed his eyes immediately, a signal that he would no longer be speaking to Sasha. She folded her arms angrily, but said nothing.

Luke cleared his throat, just in case either party needed to know he was still sitting there, confused as hell. Jess hadn't informed him of his situation in California. Apparently, there hadn't been much bonding between the father and son. Luke stood up and prepared to defend his weakened nephew. "You kicked him out?" he was a decibel below shouting.

Sasha shot Luke a _don't mess with me_ look. "There is a reason for everything," she started calmly.

"He came to find his father!" Luke absolutely outraged at that point.

"I didn't know he had a son."

"You didn't know he had a son?" Luke roared.

Although mostly pleasant, Sasha was also strict. "Jimmy and I..."

"**Bullshit** you didn't know he had a son!" Jess's eyes widened. He had never seen Luke so angry in his life.

Jess closed his eyes and tried to calm himself down. He grabbed the tail of Luke's plaid shirt to set him back a notch. Jess sunk into the pillows and closed his eyes before Luke turned to the bed. "Don't even bother Luke. It isn't worth it," Jess mumbled with his eyes still closed. He scooted himself into a sitting position. "Tell Jimmy "fuck you" for me. You can go back to California now."

Sasha looked shocked, but she realized she should have expected the visit to go the way it had. Jess had a right to be angry with Jimmy; he even had a right to be angry with her. Jimmy had made a mistake trying to reason with his son through her. She sighed and tucked a short blonde hair behind her ear. "Jimmy wanted to give you this." Sasha handed Jess an envelope that he figured had a card in it. "I won't bother you again."

"Good," he mumbled, thumbing the flap of the envelope.

After Sasha departed in a hurry, Luke watched Jess fiddle with the envelope. "What was that about?" Luke asked.

"Nothing. It's in the past. Forget about it." Jess tossed the envelope aside and closed his eyes. Luke sighed at the obvious sign to leave him alone for a while and left the room as well.

* * *

"Good morning Rory, baby," Lorelai cooed. 

"I want to see Jess," Rory said immediately. Lorelai looked shocked, but she knew to give her daughter what she wanted. Before she could say anything, Rory continued. "Luke can to see me last night."

"He was here?" Lorelai asked. Usually, they went to the hospital together. It was strange that he had gone back so late. Unless…

"Jess burst his stitches."

Unless Jess burst his stitches. Lorelai smiled nervously, and then scratched her head. "Well, sweets, let me check in with Luke and I'll see what I can do." She stepped into the hallway and Rory watched her until she was gone.

It had become important for Rory to see Jess now. Since she first woke up, she had been nervous about the accident. No one really filled her in completely when it came to Jess, so she needed to see if he was okay with her own two eyes. Now that she could see, that wouldn't be an issue. Rory waited patiently for her mother to come back in the room with some good news. After a few minutes, she became tired of waiting idly and plucked a book off her bedside table. It was a book Jess added notes to constantly. _Howl_ had always been one of her favorites, quick read or not, and Jess was always cluttering up her margins with new insights.

A few more minutes and twelve pages passed before Lorelai emerged in the doorway. Rory immediately shut the book and looked up at her mother with expectant eyes. "He's doing great, sweets."

"Can I see him?" she pressed.

Lorelai's face lit up. "Jess's nurse said it would be perfectly all right if he had a visitor today."

Rory's expression perked up. "I can see him?" she summed up happily.

"You can see him."

"So that means I get to be out of this room," she mused gleefully. "When can I go?" Rory asked excitedly.

"Well, Jess has one more test today. Then your nurse is going to set you up with a stylish set of wheels and bring you down to Jess." Lorelai was perky that morning. Moreover, she was thrilled that her daughter would finally get to see the boy she loved today.

Rory was not as pleased with the "stylish set of wheels" as Lorelai thought she would be. "A wheelchair?" Rory grimaced.

"Hey, kiddo, it's a hospital. I don't make the rules."

Deep down, Rory knew that she couldn't get around the rules; she didn't want Jess to see her as weak. It was a possibility that she would need to be the strong one for him. Rory needed him to know that she was perfectly fine, even though she knew she wasn't.

* * *

"Lorelai told me we got the okay for a visit. That sounds good, doesn't it?" Luke said as Jess began to drift off to sleep. "They'll be here soon," he warned at the sight of his sleepy nephew. "You want to be asleep when Rory gets here?" 

Jess shook his head weakly. "Tired…Uncle Luke," he mumbled.

Luke nodded and went to squeeze the boy's hand. He looked so much smaller than he remembered him. Jess was never what one could consider tall, but the height he did have seemed to disappear under the bedclothes. Jess Mariano had always been on the slim side as well, but he seemed to have dropped nearly ten pounds since they admitted him. Luke noticed that his nephew's face look gaunt and his body looked almost limp. He didn't look very healthy at all so far.

Luke eyed the doorway as Jess drifted to sleep. Any moment now, he expected a perky Lorelai to wheel her exuberant daughter in the room. He had just looked away when Gabby knocked on the doorframe.

"Is Jess up for his visitor?" she asked timidly, feeling as though she had interrupted Luke's thoughtful moment.

"No, that's great timing," Luke said.

Lorelai wheeled Rory over to the side of Jess's bed and lightly rubbed her daughter's back. "We should give them some alone time," she told Luke. He obviously agreed with her.

"Coffee?" he asked.

"Such a rhetorical question!" Lorelai took Luke's hand and went off happily with him.

Rory noticed Jess's gaunt appearance immediately. "Jess?" she whispered sweetly in his ear. His eyelids fluttered a bit. "Jess?"

Groggily, Jess opened one eye to look at Rory. The other eye followed shortly after. "Rory," he gasped, pleased that he was finally face to face with his girlfriend. It had been the first time they were in the same room since the crash.

"Jess," she whispered softly. Tear glittered in her eyes until they rolled down her cheeks. Without missing a beat, Jess wiped her eyes with his sheet.

"I can't believe you're here," he said. "I missed you." Jess used most of his pent up strength to lean over his guardrail and kiss her. She scooted closer to him in the chair and wrapped her arms around him. She was delighted to run her fingers through his disheveled hair.

"I love you," she said.

"Rory Gilmore, you are my sunshine," he responded. "I love you."

Rory smiled gratefully and kissed him on the lips. "I can't wait until we're out of here."

Jess nodded and sunk back into his pillows. He closed his eyes briefly. "Rory?""Yeah?"

"I'm tired," he said sadly. "Will you stay with me while I sleep?" he requested.

Rory nodded. She was used to napping at this time as well. "I'm going to share your pillow," she said.

Jess smiled down at his girlfriend as she fell asleep with him. He smoothed down her hair and softly sang, "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine…"


	10. Into the Unknown

The wait for this chapter was a lot longer than I would have liked. Unfortunately, my muse went to the store to buy some milk last week and just came back tonight. Here's chapter ten. I know at least one person that will be happy with this chapter. Happy reading. Reviews are love!!

Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far. Special thanks to everyone that reviewed chapter nine: _Loridhhp, Kassandra27, blonde-biatch, Shaolin-Queen, Java, Curley-Q, JessRoryYudaTidusforever, LorLukealways, Jeremy Shane, Starbell, Sailor-Lit, catieXOX, Sophie, gilmoreintraining, Phoebegirl319, Kat Kat B., hollowgirl22, and JESSandRORYforever. Keep the reviews coming. I feast on them._ : )

**Disclaimer:** Not mine. Not mine. Not mine.

* * *

**Into the Unknown**

"They're doing great, aren't they? Lorelai asked as she twirled her coffee cup.

"Yeah, they are," Luke agreed. He refilled her waiting mug and Lorelai thanked him with a smile.

"Rory's coming home tomorrow," she mentioned gleefully. "When are they moving Jess?"

Luke flicked off the coffee maker and sat next to Lorelai. "They're moving him out of intensive care on Wednesday. So that's three days."

"Three days?" Lorelai took a sip of her fresh coffee. "When are they sending him home?" she asked.

"I don't know. He's been in the hospital for two weeks." Luke sighed and shifted in his chair. "He's going to need a lot of help."

Lorelai nodded. "He hasn't been out of bed yet."

"Right."

"Rory's probably going to need physical therapy. Her nurse mentioned that it was something to consider."

Luke nodded weakly. "Yeah, Jess is going to need a lot of therapy."

She looked into her coffee cup sadly before facing Luke again. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

Luke shot her a half smile and kissed her lightly on the lips.

* * *

"They're discharging me today," Rory said softly as she planted a kiss on Jess's forehead.

He nodded. "I know. I'm glad."

"I want you to come home with me."

"I wish I could." Jess took Rory's hand and pulled her closer to him. "I'm glad they let you in without a wheelchair."

She smiled at him. "Me too. I'd rather walk. I missed walking. I'm never going to bed ever again!" she laughed.

"Not until tonight, at least." Jess smiled at Rory. She had missed his smile every day that she could not see him.

"I'm going to come see you every day," she promised.

"And I'm going to hold you to that," Jess said. He smiled again, which caused Rory to smile back.

"I love you," she said.

"I love you too." Jess struggled to sit up. When he was finally in a comfortable position, he slipped his hand behind Rory's neck and pulled her closer to him.

They kissed passionately as the world fell around them. All their problems disappeared as they disappeared into each other.

"Ahem," Lorelai cleared her throat from the doorway. Rory blushed a little as she and Jess broke apart.

"Hi mom."

"I knew I'd find you here. The nurse said you threw some clothes on and she escorted you here. You're walking."

"It's true; I'm walking." She did a spin on her sneakers and smiled.

"I guess that's a no to physical therapy?" Lorelai asked.

"I don't need physical therapy. I need these things out of my arm!" Rory joked as she held her stitched up arm out.

"That's right. I need to make an appointment for the doctor to remove your stitches." Lorelai sighed. "I don't know why they couldn't have used those cool stitches that absorb into your skin."

Rory made a face. "I know why. That's gross!" She looked over at Jess briefly, who had his eyes closed.

"I think we put him to sleep," Lorelai said.

Rory laughed. "I guess we should get going."

"I'll be out in the hall. Take a minute," Lorelai requested.

She waited until Lorelai had left the room to sit on the edge of his bed. "I love you," she said again as she combed his hair with her fingers. "I'll be back. I'll be here a lot. I promise." Jess moaned in his sleep and scrunched his nose up. Rory smiled at him and kissed the tip of his nose. "I'll be back later," she promised again before exiting the room.

"I'm going to need to take care of him," Rory said as Lorelai escorted her to the elevator.

"He's going to be fine, sweets."

"He looks better, but he looks worse. I don't know how else to put it," Rory said softly. She pushed the button on the panel and slumped in the corner of the elevator.

"It's probably because of the spleen thing," Lorelai said.

"Spleen?" Rory questioned. "What about his spleen thing?"

Lorelai sighed. "That's right. I'm sure Luke wouldn't have told you Jess had his spleen removed."

"My _boyfriend_ had an organ taken out and everyone failed to mention it to me?"

"Uh, yeah. I'm guessing that didn't earn us any brownie points." Lorelai fluffed her hair nervously. "Sorry, kid."

"I'm just tired," Rory said. "I'm sorry I started getting hysterical."

"It's fine. I understand," Lorelai said as she hugged Rory. "Let's get you home. You can sleep in your own bed. Luke will make you mashed potatoes and coffee. Everything will work out fine."

"Right, let's go home."

* * *

"So this is great, isn't it?" Rory asked as she sat with Jess. "They're moving you in a couple of hours."

Jess nodded. "Getting tired of all these machines."

"I'm going back to Yale on Monday," Rory mentioned. "Paris informed me that she had accomplices tape lectures and photo copy notes for me."

"Well, shucks. Good ole Paris." Jess fiddled with one of the IVs in his vein.

"You're bitter today," Rory said.

Jess said nothing. Of course he was bitter. Why should he not be bitter? He had every reason in the world to be bitter at this moment. "Jimmy's girlfriend showed up the other day."

"Oh," Rory said softly. She knew all the reasons he had to be bitter. "What happened?"

"The usual," Jess said, waving her away.

"What's the usual?" Rory asked. She was not just curious for curiosity sake; she was curious for Jess's well being.

"Yelling, arguing, that sort of thing."

"Sounds like a real family affair."

"Always is." Jess reached over and pulled open the drawer. The blue envelope has stayed unopened and out of sight. Carefully, he plucked the piece of stationary from the nightstand and handed it to Rory.

"What's this?" she asked. The seal had not been broken, but the edges appeared to have been toyed with quite a bit.

"I don't know. Something Jimmy wanted Sasha to give me." Jess shrugged. "I didn't feel like opening it."

Rory turned the envelope around in her hands. The name _Jess_ had been written in faded letters. "You should open it."

"Nah. Leaves something to the imagination." Jess accepted the envelope as Rory handed it back to him. Promptly, he stuck it back in the drawer.

"It might be important," Rory said.

"It might not be," Jess responded. Rory sighed. She knew Jess was too headstrong to let her win an argument such as that.

"How are you feeling?" Rory asked suddenly.

"Fine," Jess answered quickly.

"Are you sure?"

"Very."

"You look pale," Rory said.

"So do you," Jess retorted, "but I'm not knocking you for it."

"Jess," Rory whined softly, "Why are you so stubborn?"

"I'm not stubborn. I'm bitter, remember?" he snapped.

Tears sprung to Rory's eyes. "Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?" Jess sneered. "Why are you being like this?"

"I'm not being like anything, Rory!" Jess shouted. They hadn't argued like that in a long time.

Rory shot a look at the clock. "Maybe I should get going. You obviously don't want me here today."

"Christ! That's not it! Why does it always have to be about Rory Gilmore? This has nothing to do with you!" Jess shouted again.

"Jess," Rory started.

"No! You don't get to coddle me after this!" Jess raised his voice higher.

"Jess," she started again.

"Stop, Rory, just stop!" Jess yelled. A machine next to his bed started to beep.

"Jess, are you okay?" Rory asked as soon as she had an entrance.

"Fuck, no."

"What's the matter?" she asked.

"I don't know."

Gabby dashed into the room to fix the beeping machine. "_Jess_," she said. "They're sending you upstairs and you're setting this thing off. That's not good." She reached around one of the devices to produce a thermometer. "Hold that under your tongue." She eyed her watch until the minute was over. Rory held back against the wall while Gabby did what she had to do. "Jess Mariano," she said quietly. "Shit, Jess Mariano."

"What's wrong?" Rory asked. Gabby turned around quickly. She had forgotten Rory was still in the room.

"He has a fever of 106. I don't know what it is, but something's wrong."

"Jess?" Rory asked quietly.

He didn't respond. Another machine started beeping wildly.

"You need to leave!" Rory was shocked by Gabby's tone of voice. It scared her into thinking there was a real reason she should depart. She hurried outside without a word as another nurse rushed in the room with a crash cart.

"One, two, three, _clear._" Rory shut her eyes and sunk to the ground.


	11. The Rest of the Sun Belongs to Me

I know this is scary, but this is the last chapter! However, there is a sequel in the works that will take place a couple of months after this chapter ends. I really loved writing this, so I'm glad everyone stuck with me and enjoyed it as well!

**As always, I need to thank my reviewers. You're all awesome, thanks for the support you've given me for the last ten chapters. Most of you have even reviewed my other stories. Thanks to everyone who reviewed chapter ten**: _Loridhhp, Kassandra27, hollowgirl22, Java, Sailor-Lit, JessRoryYudaTidusforever, Jeremy Shane, GirlWithAPearl6 (I have to say, your review made me smile and I have no words. Thanks!), LorLukealways, Starbell, gilmoreintraining, Katherine Tripp, QuEEnSeRb716, ShaolinQueen (Yes! I was talking about you. I'm so glad you liked it.), imcck, Kemowitch92, Sophie, Curley-Q, Good2Know, kathi-ryn, Phoebegirl319, blonde-biatch, and Kath._

_**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine. Gilmore Girls is not mine. The Sonata Arctica lyrics at the end of the chapter are not mine. I think you get the point.**_

**The Rest of the Sun Belongs to Me**

**

* * *

**

"They won't let me in!" Rory dissolved to tears in Lorelai's arms again. Luke paced the room as Rory turned into a concerned little girl.

"Honey, we need to let the doctors do what the doctors need to do," Lorelai said calmly as she smoothed down Rory's hair.

"That's easy for you to say!" she exclaimed tearfully. "His heart stopped! Jess was in there, we were arguing, and his _heart stopped!_ Mom, do you know how terrifying that is?" Rory sobbed. "We argued and if he dies, it could be my fault!"

"Rory, it isn't your fault," Luke said softly.

"He was yelling! I was yelling! We were…yelling!" Rory rambled.

"I know, Rory," Lorelai said.

"He could die!" Rory mentioned frantically. "And we were yelling. And he could die…"

Rory hugged her teddy bear close. She could barely make his features out in the darkness of her room. She sat up and saw Lorelai slumped in the chair by her bed. She looked exhausted, but Rory could tell she wasn't asleep.

"Do you feel better?" Lorelai asked groggily.

"I think I slept. I don't remember," Rory said softly. Her sheets crinkled as she shifted in bed. "Mommy, can you sleep with me tonight? I think I need you to."

Lorelai nodded and hoisted herself out of the chair. She had been sitting there for over seven hours, causing her severe back pain. Gratefully, she sunk underneath the covers with her daughter. "Do you want to talk?" she asked.

"Please."

"He's doing okay," Lorelai said.

"His heart stopped on three different occasions." Rory paused. "I didn't think the accident was this bad, mom."

"Kid, it wasn't so much the accident. You know Jess was driving when that truck hit his side of the car. I'm guessing it's pretty bad when your ribs puncture your lungs. It sounds pretty gruesome. Then the whole spleen thing. That's what is really the problem. Jess is a fighter. He'll be back on his feet in no time at all," Lorelai tried to convince Rory.

"Mom. I love him. I love Jess. I don't know what I would do if this was more serious than it already is!" Rory buried her face in her pillow. "You can't understand what I'm going through right now. I love that you're trying to comfort me, but you can't honestly say that you know how I feel right now."

Lorelai sighed. Rory was absolutely right. She had never been in the position her daughter was in. If she closed her eyes and imagined it in her head with Luke lying there, helpless and so sick he could die, she could see it off in the distance. "I know. I don't have this kind of experience and I'm lucky. I just want you to come out of this a little less hurt and frustrated than you are now."

"I just want Jess back," Rory said softly. "We were supposed to go book shopping and have dinner. We never got around to that part of the night. I just wish that stupid truck didn't run the red light. I'm never going to get over the panic…the fear…the absolute terror I felt as the headlights poured into the car. It's hard, mom, it's really hard to forget this kind of experience."

"I think you should rest for a bit." Lorelai kissed Rory's forehead and pulled the covers over both of them. "We'll get some beauty sleep and take a ride over to the hospital in the morning. It's late. We can't go now, so we'll have to wait a little while."

"I want him to know it's me. I want him to see me and talk to me and love me," Rory said softly as she started to fade.

"I know, babe. Believe me, that's all everyone wants."

* * *

"You really scared Rory," Luke said as he tightened his grip on Jess's hand. "Hell, you scared me." Luke looked around the room. It was completely empty. He was wearing a sterile yellow gown and a white hat. Ridiculous was the only was to put how he looked. The gown and hat were obviously not his biggest problems. Right now, he was more concerned with the infection Jess had contracted. The kid was burning up. Doctors and nurses kept checking in on him, taking his temperature, and administering different types of medication. Jess looked paler and skinnier than Luke had ever seen him. As Lorelai had told him before, Jess was a fighter. Luke knew he would get through this.

Timidly, Rory knocked on the doorframe. Her own sterile gown was clutched in one hand. Luke slid out the door to speak with Rory.

"He's in isolation. That sounds bad," Rory said softly.

"It might be. They aren't sure," Luke said as he took his white shower cap like hat off.

Rory nodded. "No word then?"

"Nope, nothing at all."

"Great. That's great," Rory said under her breath.

"I know they're trying," Luke said. "Jess will get better."

"He's a fighter. I know. I have had multiple people inform me of that today. Not that I didn't know it before. It's obvious that Jess is a fighter. Jess is headstrong. He's tough. He'll make it." Rory sunk into the chair next to her. "He has to make it. I don't know what I'll do if he doesn't make it."

"Don't worry. He's going to make it." Luke sighed and sat down next to Rory. "I know things don't look too good right now."

"No, they don't," she agreed.

"But we're going to have to take this in stride. This is just another obstacle. Jess will make it through."

Rory looked at Luke as if she expected him to say more. "That's it? What does that even mean?"

"I'm not sure. It sounded good before I said it, but I think something got a little jumbled up there. I haven't been sleeping well," Luke explained.

"You don't have to explain. I get it. I'm sorry this is all happening. I hate it too, but I especially hate that you don't deserve this." Rory looked at the floor. "It feels like something is a little jumbled up there with me too. I can't think of the right thing to say anymore."

Luke reached over and held Rory as he would a daughter. "Rory, you know I care about you. You can't say anything wrong. And you're here, so that's helping me," he said.

"Thank you, Luke. At least I know I can help." She looked down at her shoes again. "Is it okay if I go on there? I mean, I know I need to put the gown on, but can I go in there? It's only one person in at a time. I understand if you need a little more time. That's fine with me. I can wait. You can go ahead and just let me know when you're done and then I'll go in," Rory rambled.

"No. It's fine. I've been in with Jess for two hours straight so far."

"Okay." Rory nodded. "Thanks, Luke. You know, for everything."

She slipped into the gown and put the hat over her hair. Luke remained in the hallway, but he tipped his head back. Rory knew that was probably the only chance he would have for sleep for a while. Carefully, she pressed the button on the door and let herself in. It felt like Jess was protected in a little plastic bubble. She was not sure how to react to his appearance.

"Jess…" her sentence hung in the air as she took his hand in her own. "I hate that we fought. I know you probably can't hear me, but I wanted to apologize. I know I shouldn't have said anything. I understand now what happened." She squeezed his hand gently. "I love you Jess. I'm so scared of losing you. This whole fiasco has been horrible. Everyone is just running amuck." She squeezed his hand and he appeared to have squeezed back. "Jess? If you can hear me, squeeze my hand again." Jess squeezed harder. "Please, can you try opening your eyes?"

Jess struggled. His eyelids felt heavy with sleep as he tried to open them. He heard Rory calling in the distance as he squeezed her hand one more time. Finally, he blinked. He opened his left eye and immediately shut it when the light hit him the wrong way. "Ror…ry," he said groggily.

"Jess!" she exclaimed.

"You're wearing a stupid dress," he said. His voice was much less broken up.

"You're in isolation. I had to wear this stupid dress to see you." She brushed the stray hairs that had fallen across his forehead.

"I died," he said bluntly.

Rory nodded. Her eyes filled with tears. "I know."

"I died. But I'm alive now."

"I know." Rory began to sob.

"I'm going to get better."

"Jess, you came back to me," Rory said, the tears still filling her eyes.

"Yeah."

"How?"

"You're my sun, Rory. I can't think of anything without you there. You light up my world." Jess smiled and grabbed Rory's hands. "You're my sun. I thought I was going to die Rory, out in the cold. I remember bits and pieces. I don't know what I did, but somehow I got you. It's like you fell from the sky. You're like a part of the sun. You're my part of the sun." Jess smiled. He knew he was talking a lot, but he couldn't help it.

"You're not making a lot of sense, Jess."

"I died, Rory."

Rory tried to smile. "I know. I heard. We've covered this before."

"I died," Jess repeated. "I'm alive because of you. I don't know how, but you're mine. You're my sun."

Rory smiled and tried to ease herself into the slightly large bed.

"You brought me back to life."

* * *

_I have no feelings, there is no more sunlight.  
The darkest hour is now here.  
I must have lost it for good, staying here without a fight.  
Out in the cold and windy night.  
Still waiting for a sign._

_I know there is still a day for me.  
One short moment is still enough for me.  
Bring me life with your ray of light.  
If only I found a small piece of the fallen sun..._

_I wait for the day that will come.  
Wait for the sunlight, wait for the one.  
You can do what you want with the sea,  
but the rest of the sun belongs to me._

_

* * *

_

_Fin._


End file.
